US House unanimously votes to retroactively pay 800,000 furloughed workers

A protest held by furloughed federal workers outside the U.S. Capitol to demand an end to the lockout of federal workers caused by the government shutdown October 4, 2013 in Washington, DC. (AFP Photo / Win Mcnamee)

The Republican-led US House of Representatives unanimously voted to approve a bill which will see 800,000 workers furloughed during the ongoing partial government shutdown paid once the crisis ends.

The 407-0 vote in the House was a rare moment of bipartisanship
within the deeply divided lower house of Congress.

The measure will now be sent to the Senate, which is controlled
by the Democrats. The White House announced that President Barack
Obama will sign the measure into law once it passes
Congress.

"This is not their fault and they should not suffer as a
result," Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., said of federal
workers. "This bill is the least we should do. Our
hard-working public servants should not become collateral damage
in the political games and ideological wars that Republicans are
waging."

Rep. Michael Turner, R-Ohio, said federal workers should not have
to worry about paying their bills while the Congress and the
White House battle over funding the government.

"They have child care expenses, house payments to make, kids
that are in college, and while the president refuses to
negotiate, while he's playing politics, they shouldn't worry
about whether or not they can make ends meet," Turner said.

In the 1995-96 government shutdowns, furloughed workers were
retroactively paid their salaries in full.

Republicans plan to introduce piecemeal budget votes over the
weekend which would see symbolic funding granted to additional
public services. If approved, the National Weather Service, the
Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) and child nutrition
and development programs could be reopened.

Democrats are likely to vote down the stopgap measures, however,
which they view as part and parcel of the Republican strategy to
shift blame for the shutdown away from the GOP, which has been
accused of holding the White House ransom over healthcare
reforms.

The shutdown ensued after House Republicans failed to come to an
agreement with Democrats with regards to passing the federal
budget. It was sparked by the GOP’s reluctance to accept
President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act, or “Obamacare,”
which finally went into effect Tuesday morning amid the
shutdown.

On Saturday, President Obama called on the House to "stop this
farce" and end the US government shutdown by unconditionally
approving a federal budget.

"Take that vote. Stop this farce. End this shutdown now,"
Obama said in his weekly radio and video address.

Earlier in the day, US Secretary of State John Kerry warned the
partial government shutdown could weaken the United States’
global standing.

"If it were prolonged, or repeated, people would begin to
question the willingness of the United States to stay the course
and its ability to, but that’s not the case and I don’t think it
will be the case,” Kerry told journalists at the Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation forum in Indonesia's Bali.

He continued that Congress should think “long and hard” about the
message the US was sending to the world when “we can’t get our
own act together.”

Kerry called on lawmakers to "end it now, end it today."

President Barack Obama had planned to attend the summit of Asian
leaders, but canceled his travel plans to remain Washington and
deal with the shutdown, which entered its fifth day on Saturday.
Kerry is now heading the US delegation in the talks.

'This isn't some damn game'

Public opinion has placed
responsibility for the shutdown at the Republican’s feet,
reducing the debate over the government shutdown to allegations
and recriminations that both sides are seeking to prolong the
crisis for political advantage.

Republicans jumped on off-the-record quotes in the Wall Street
Journal which allegedly showed the White House was prepared for a
protracted battle.

“… It doesn't really matter to us [how long the shutdown
lasts] because what matters is the end result," the paper
cites a senior administration official as saying.

"This morning I get out the Wall Street Journal out and it
says: 'We don't care how long it lasts because we [the Democrats]
are winning'," said House Speaker John Boehner. "This
isn't some damn game. All we are asking for is to sit down and
have a discussion."

Although it remains unknown if the anonymous quote in the Wall
Street Journal reflects on the actual Obama administration
position, the White House and Democrats remain firm that they
will only negotiate with Republicans after the government is
reopened and the $16.7 trillion debt limit is raised.